Content Modeling
Content modeling in Shio CMS revolves around Post Types — reusable templates that define the structure of content items. This guide covers how to create and configure Post Types, the available field types, the publishing workflow, and content relationships.
Post Types
A Post Type defines:
- Name — human-readable label
- Description — purpose of the content type
- Identifier — unique system key
- Publishing responsibility — who can approve and publish
System Post Types
Shio CMS ships with built-in Post Types for common content patterns:
| Post Type | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Text | General-purpose text content |
| Photo | Image content with metadata |
| Video | Video content |
| Quote | Quoted text |
| Link | External URL reference |
| File | Downloadable file |
| Region | Reusable page section |
| Theme | Site theme definition |
| Page Layout | Page template |
| Alias | URL redirect to another object |
| Folder Index | Default content for a folder |
Custom Post Types
You can create custom Post Types with any combination of fields. To create a new Post Type:
- Navigate to Administration > Post Types in the admin console
- Click New Post Type
- Define the Name, Description, and Identifier
- Add fields (see Field Types below)
- Configure publishing responsibility
Field Types
Fields are the building blocks of Post Types. Each field has a name, description, identifier, and type. You can configure whether a field serves as the title and/or description of the Post Type.
| Field Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Text | Single-line text input |
| Text Area | Multi-line plain text |
| HTML Editor | Rich text editor with formatting |
| Ace Editor (HTML) | Code editor with HTML syntax highlighting |
| Ace Editor (Javascript) | Code editor with JavaScript syntax highlighting |
| Content Select | Reference to another content item |
| Relator | Relationship to one or more content items |
| Combo Box | Dropdown selection |
| Multi Select | Multi-value selection |
| Check Box | Boolean checkbox |
| Date | Date picker |
| Hidden | Hidden field (not shown in editor) |
| Tab | Visual tab separator for organizing fields |
| Recaptcha | CAPTCHA verification field |
| Form Configuration | Form submission settings |
Field Configuration
For each field you can:
- Order fields within the Post Type
- Set as Title — marks the field as the Post Type's title
- Set as Description — marks the field as the Post Type's description
- Configure search mapping — define how the field is indexed in Viglet Turing ES
Publishing Workflow
Every post follows a lifecycle from creation to publication:
| Status | Visible on site? | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Draft | No | Newly created, only visible in management view |
| Published | Yes | Live on the published site |
| Stale | Yes (old version) | Published but modified — re-publish to update |
| Unpublished | No | Removed from published site, still in repository |
Workflow Tasks
Shio CMS supports workflow tasks for content approval. Administrators can configure workflows that require approval before content is published.
Content Relationships
References
Posts can reference other posts using Content Select and Relator fields. References create navigable relationships between content items.
- Content Select — references a single content item
- Relator — references one or more content items with ordering
Folder Hierarchy
Content is organized in a hierarchical folder structure within each site. Folders can be nested to create a tree. Posts live inside folders.
Site
├── Home (Folder)
│ ├── About (Post)
│ └── Contact (Post)
├── Blog (Folder)
│ ├── Post 1
│ └── Post 2
└── Products (Folder)
├── Category A (Folder)
│ ├── Product 1
│ └── Product 2
└── Category B (Folder)
Content Ordering
Posts within a folder can be reordered via drag-and-drop in the admin console. The order is reflected immediately on the published site pages.
Search Navigation Integration
Post Type fields can be mapped to Viglet Turing ES Semantic Navigation fields for precise search indexing:
- Search Field Association — map a field to a default Turing SN field (title, description, text, date, URL, image)
- Create Additional Search Field — map a field to a custom Turing SN field
This allows you to control exactly what content is searchable and how it appears in search results. See Search & Caching for details.
Spreadsheet Export
You can generate a spreadsheet of a folder's contents. Each Post Type in the folder becomes a separate sheet, with columns for each field. This is useful for bulk content review and reporting.
Related Pages
| Page | Description |
|---|---|
| Core Concepts | Sites, Folders, Posts, and Page Layouts |
| Website Development | Page Layouts, Regions, and JavaScript API |
| Search & Caching | Turing ES integration and Hazelcast cache |
| REST API | Post, Post Type, and folder API endpoints |